Just going to preface this by saying I don't usually post in these threads so my thoughts might be a little disorganized. Since we've had a survey for each of the recent metagames (DLC 1, Post-Home, DLC 2) I think it's valid to start with the observation that both enjoyment and stability have gone down since the Post-Home survey. Enjoyment has gone from 7.25 (Post-Home) to 6.59 (DLC 2) and stability has dropped to 5.67 (DLC 2) from 6.43. For reference, enjoyment was at 6.2 and stability at 6.9 for the last Gen 8 survey. I think it's fairly disingenuous to compare SS to SV in any real capacity given how different they are, and I think the difference between SV being viewed as more enjoyable vs less stable and SS being more stable and less enjoyable demonstrates that. I'm not a believer in the showdown ladder being representative of the tier as a whole because of all the gimmicks used at low ELO, but I'll just mention Miraidon sits comfortably at #2 in usage for February with a large difference in usage between it and the third most used pokemon, Necrozma-Dusk-Mane. In UWC usage stats these two are flipped with NDM having ~63% usage and Miraidon having ~55.7%. There's another massive dropoff in these stats between Miraidon at #3 with 55.7% and Ho-oh at #4 with ~31.7%. With these numbers out of the way, I want to get into my thoughts about Miraidon.
Sitting comfortably in the 405 speed tier, the main pokemon that can outspeed and threaten to KO Miraidon are Deoxys-Attack, Zacian, Scarf Koraidon, Iron Bundle, opposing Scarf Miraidon, Flutter Mane, & Chien-Pao. Of these, Iron Bundle (with Boots) and Chien-Pao (Band) need use up their Tera to threaten the OHKO, and there's always the possibility that Miraidon can use a defensive Tera to avoid it. While the pivot set doesn't have the immediate power of Specs, there are very few things that want to switch into a Draco Meteor or Electro Drift. Bulky ground types (Groundceus, Ting-Lu, Clodsire, Spdef Gliscor, Spdef Groudon) & Blissey are the mons that can defensively check Miraidon but still must watch out for certain sets. Groudon, for example, cannot check Specs Miraidon and is at best a one-time switchin to the pivot set as well. Ting-Lu, the premier Miraidon check, can switch in at best twice to the pivot set before dying to the 3rd Draco Meteor. Defensively, Blissey fares the best, but is so passive it can't stop Miraidon from wearing it down and pressing Taunt to prevent healing. Spdef Groundceus can avoid the 2HKO from Draco but can only threaten the OHKO about 30% of the time if it opts to run EQ over Judgment. There are more niche options that can be run to check or surprise kill Miraidon like Iron Treads & Haban Eternatus, but they tend to fare poorly against the rest of the tier (arguably Blissey falls into this category as well but I've included it with the main checks since it does provide some utility against Calm Mind Arceus forms and other special attackers whereas Treads is really just useful for its ability to check Miraidon) or are just not worth using when compared to more standard sets. Without exception, each of these checks must fear whatever Tera type Miraidon happens to be running. Tera Dragon can be used to get an immediate power boost to muscle through a Ground type or Tera Flying/Bug can be used to remove its Ground weakness and set up on a mon that previously checked it. With a defensive Tera and Agility, Miraidon can even manage to get through its offensive checks, using Tera Fairy on a Koraidon locked into a Dragon move to get a free turn of set up or something similar with various other Tera types.
Miraidon has a lot of variety stemming from its massive usage rate, but the main sets it opts to run are the Boots pivot set, Specs set, double dance set, and Calm Mind Life Orb set, with options like Scarf being more niche. On preview it’s typically impossible to say with certainty which set Miraidon happens to be running since each of its sets can be used on pretty much any team archetype without major drawback. Starting with the Boots pivot set, Miraidon trades in the wallbreaking and sweeping capabilities of its other sets for the longevity provided by never taking hazards damage upon switching in. Miraidon can effectively come in, click Draco Meteor, and U-Turn out as many times as it wants during the game, provided it doesn’t use up all of its Draco Meteors. Like I mentioned above, a lot of the Spdef Ground types can switch into this set but can struggle with actually beating it. Assuming the Miraidon has U-Turn, and hits Draco Meteor, each interaction of switching your Spdef Ground in is going to come down to a 50/50 between whether the Miraidon Taunts or not, preventing recovery for the Ground type and resulting in Miraidon beating it next time it gets the opportunity to come in.
Even if the Ground type attacks Miraidon on the turn it uses Taunt, Miraidon will live the attack (aside from EQ Groundceus/Groudon) and proceed to win the 1v1 next time it comes in. Attempting to check this Miraidon set defensively is difficult and, in the long run, almost always going to favor the Miraidon user.
While the Specs set can no longer stop a defensive answer from healing, very few answers exist to reliably switch into it. Clodsire, Groudon, Gliscor, and Groundceus (most of the time), can no longer serve as reliable answers due to their inability to avoid the 2HKO from Specs Draco.
Ting-Lu and Blissey are the two mons that can switch into a Specs Miraidon without fearing much, but Ting-Lu can only do so once as it has no reliable recovery and Blissey isn’t very usable in the current meta. The Calm Mind LO set is fairly similar in power to the Specs set, the only notable difference is that it has a chance to OHKO Ting-Lu with Tera Dragon (at +1) whereas the Specs set is a 2HKO with Tera Dragon. For the sake of brevity, I won’t list the calcs here but I’m sure you can imagine how much +1 LO Miraidon is doing to anything that switches in.
Finishing with the double dance set, this set allows Miraidon to boost its speed to help prevent its offensive checks from revenge killing it, and enjoys much more bulk as a result of not having to invest in its Speed stat. Double dance can’t really afford to run Draco Meteor so it struggles breaking through Ground types when compared to the other sets, but at +1 it still hits respectable damage levels. If it opts to run Electric Seed, it can even avoid the OHKO from defensive Groudon and Groundceus, allowing it to safely 2HKO them.
Now that all of the defensive calcs are out of the way, let’s look at the options you have to revenge kill Miraidon.
With the double dance set at 248 HP, Flutter Mane & Iron Bundle now require Specs to OHKO Miraidon, and many of the other guaranteed OHKOs dropped to 2HKOs or to rolls. This isn’t taking into account the effects of Electric Seed, which allows Miraidon to live all of the physical attacks from Zacian, Koraidon, and Chien-Pao. This also isn’t considering Tera, which enables Miraidon to completely switch its weaknesses and freely set up on previous checks.
Looking at Miraidon in a vacuum, everything I’ve said above holds true and looks to total to an insurmountable presence both in the builder and during the game. Its defensive checks aren’t (usually) long term and its offensive checks struggle to beat it based on the set its running or the Tera it uses. However, I’m of the opinion that in spite of all of this, Miraidon isn’t ban worthy.
I'm going to start with the double dance set since those were the last calcs displayed. Once it has set up, double dance Miraidon can be a very difficult mon to check, at least until Electric Terrain runs out. Without the additional boost provided by the Terrain, Miraidon is much more manageable, and it needs to spend at least 2 turns clicking Agility & Calm Mind to reach those difficult-to-manage levels in the first place, 2 turns of terrain that it has to burn. Even then, the Spdef Ground types serve to answer this variant of Miraidon pretty well, either by phazing it or clicking Toxic. This is without mentioning that Miraidon is rarely given the opportunity to freely set up to a level to sweep an entire team. Even if it does get to that level, Ho-Oh can come in, use its Tera (the two most common in Fairy or Ground allow it to beat this set) and phaze it. I realize in practice it's often not this simple, but a lot of the time I've seen Miraidon able to click Agility into Calm Mind and proceed to sweep a team it was because their opponent misplayed and let the Miraidon freely set up. It can be difficult to stay in on an unrevealed Miraidon set to attempt to phaze it but going into a Spdef Ground type isn't a game losing play against Miraidon, and this Miraidon set in particular cannot threaten to OHKO them and cannot prevent Toxic/Whirlwind from Clod/Glisc/Ting. If you opt to drop the Spdef Ground then your team is probably more offensive, and a 308 speed Miraidon likely isn’t being given the opportunity to click Agility unless its behind screens.
A few of the pro-ban arguments I’ve seen mention how the defensive checks like Clodsire & Ting-Lu make no progress in the game, essentially switching into Miraidon to take a Draco and then getting forced out by Ho-Oh, Gliscor, etc, which, while true, ignores their ability to set hazards, spread Toxic, or otherwise make progress passively. They don’t make immediate progress, but I disagree with them just being sponges that exist to check Miraidon. It’s important to take into account the long-term effect of the hazards they set up if nothing else. If Miraidon happens to be running a Specs set, the single spike that Ting-Lu is able to set up will work to put it in range of any number of Scarf users or revenge killers like Ekiller that previously were unable to revenge it from full. Further, everything I’ve said about Miraidon above is ignoring the opportunity cost that inherently comes with clicking Draco Meteor or an Electric type attack. Want to break past that Clodsire? You’ll need to click Draco in order to do that, leaving you at -2 Spatk and allowing any mon to come in and start to set up on you. But wait, your opponent actually went into Ho-Oh to take the Draco and doubled into Clodsire to take the incoming Electro Drift. Now you’ve achieved essentially nothing and you’re forced to either pivot out or risk taking half your HP to prevent hazards from going up. Having a Ground type on your team is enough to, at worst, force a 50/50 for the Miraidon user, and given that many of the typical hazard setters are Ground mons, I don’t see this "need" as being overly constraining in the builder.
Another part to the pro-ban argument is that most of the Spdef Ground types wouldn’t be used if Miraidon was no longer in the tier, and I can’t really see that happening. Despite the addition of Boots last gen, hazard stacking has taken on a great deal of prevalence due to the nonexistence of good removal. Corviknight & Giratina are the only real reliable Defoggers, and both have a multitude of issues preventing them from being used, of which Miraidon is only one. Likewise, if you want to use Rapid Spin you’re limited to Treads, Tusk, and Terapagos, and I very much doubt that any of the three will start to see a huge increase in usage if Miraidon is removed from the tier (if anything Treads will just completely disappear). Where does that leave us for hazards? For the most part, with Ground types like Gliscor, Ting-Lu, Clodsire, and Groudon for Spikes and Arceus forms for Stealth Rock (and of course with Deoxys for both). I don't see Magearna or Diancie start to pick up in usage as a result of a Miraidon ban, so the main users of Spikes will most likely remain the same, but I don’t really want to speculate too much on a metagame without Miraidon in it because there are too many ways it could go. Who knows, Ogerpon might pick up in usage and start running a Spikes pivot set. As for running Spdef over Def investment, Miraidon isn't the only mon Spdef sets are useful for. Spdef Groundceus can set up on support Arceus-Water by running a Spdef set and can beat Kyogre if it uses Tera, two things it can't do with a phys Def set. Similarly, Ting-Lu appreciates the added bulk to check Calm Mind Arceus forms, and Clodsire uses it to check Kyogre. Regardless, I don’t see Ground types disappearing just because they aren’t “needed” to check Miraidon anymore.
Since I’ve mostly looked at the interactions with the Boots & double dance sets, I want to take a look at the interactions with the Specs set. The Miraidon user is always going to be forced into deciding between Draco, Drift, and U-Turn/Volt Switch if the opposing team has a Ground type, and if they guess wrong then they have to switch out and give up momentum. If Miraidon clicks Draco on the Ground type and chips it then the Miraidon user has to decide between clicking Draco again to secure the KO or switching out to prevent a Fairy type from coming in freely or, worse, a mon from getting a free turn against a -4 Miraidon. The end result is either the Ground type healing itself on that turn, the Ground type being KO'd and a mon being given a free turn vs a -4 Miraidon, or a Fairy type coming in to take advantage of the choice locked Miraidon. Specs Miraidon is without a doubt an incredibly potent wallbreaker, but I've never felt it's so overbearing as to be constraining in the builder when most of the time it's clicking Draco and giving an opportunity for a Fairy type, or a mon that can set up on it, to come in freely. It’s not like the Fairy types in the tier are bad either, even if two of them no longer have the same presence they did in DLC1, so I’ll discuss them next.
With the return of Ho-Oh and NDM, I’ve seen it said that both Zacian & Flutter Mane have dropped off in terms of offensive presence. I agree with this for the most part, but I don’t think it’s anywhere near as bad as most people believe. Zacian has the ability to power through both Ho-Oh and NDM without being forced to run a suboptimal move set, and Flutter Mane can threaten Ho-Oh with Power Gem (though admittedly as a result the Specs set is far less potent). I’ll never claim DLC2 didn’t hurt them, but both are still very strong offensive presences within the tier and I’ve taken to running Zacian on more of my DLC2 teams recently. Even if you are running Zacian or Flutter Mane, what’s to stop Miraidon from using its Tera and winning the 1v1? First, Miraidon needs hazards up to guarantee the OHKO (with its pivot set) on Flutter & Zacian, both of which threaten the OHKO and force the Miraidon user to Tera if they’re committed to that line. Assuming the Miraidon Teras into Steel for the biggest defensive boost, and assuming the Zacian isn’t clicking Tera Fighting Close Combat, the Miraidon will be left with at most ~65% from Zacian and ~73% from Flutter Mane.
While this lets Miraidon win the 1v1, suddenly it’s both chipped and can no longer threaten to change its type, allowing the opponent to revenge it with Low Kick from Scarf Koraidon for example. The greatest asset Miraidon has is its uncertainty in set and Tera. Once the set is revealed, and this can be as simple as setting hazards, it can be played around much easier, and once the Tera has been used, by it or another mon, suddenly revenge killing it is fairly easy when the guessing factor has been removed. Of course, the Zacian/Flutter/other offensive check has the ability to Tera as well, and it’s the same with other defensive mons like Ho-Oh. Tera Ground Ho-Oh is a fantastic Miraidon check and it’s not like it only runs it for Miraidon either. Ground provides Ho-Oh with a resistance to Rock, allowing it to Whirlwind a setup Groundceus/NDM while avoiding the OHKO from Stone Edge. Similarly, Arceus-Fairy or Groundceus can Tera into the other immunity and get a free turn vs Miraidon. Both players are able to Tera, and properly accounting for Miraidon in the builder is just as essential as it is to account for Koraidon or NDM. I’ve never felt that Miraidon “warps the builder” to an unbearable level, at least not any more than other meta defining mons in this gen and past gens.
Like the survey results show, this metagame isn’t SS. SS was characterized by its stability and that’s fine, I still really enjoy playing it. SV is much more dynamic, and I don’t see that changing regardless of what, if anything, gets banned. Tera is an inherently dynamic mechanic, and the power level of this gen is way beyond what we were used to in SS. Offensive teams might be favored, but there’s still plenty of other options to use; no one is forced into running offense and offense alone. There’s a lot more counterplay to Miraidon both in the builder and during the game than people seem to believe, and hopefully I was able to shine some light on why I will be voting to not ban Miraidon.
Main team I used for reqs
Sitting comfortably in the 405 speed tier, the main pokemon that can outspeed and threaten to KO Miraidon are Deoxys-Attack, Zacian, Scarf Koraidon, Iron Bundle, opposing Scarf Miraidon, Flutter Mane, & Chien-Pao. Of these, Iron Bundle (with Boots) and Chien-Pao (Band) need use up their Tera to threaten the OHKO, and there's always the possibility that Miraidon can use a defensive Tera to avoid it. While the pivot set doesn't have the immediate power of Specs, there are very few things that want to switch into a Draco Meteor or Electro Drift. Bulky ground types (Groundceus, Ting-Lu, Clodsire, Spdef Gliscor, Spdef Groudon) & Blissey are the mons that can defensively check Miraidon but still must watch out for certain sets. Groudon, for example, cannot check Specs Miraidon and is at best a one-time switchin to the pivot set as well. Ting-Lu, the premier Miraidon check, can switch in at best twice to the pivot set before dying to the 3rd Draco Meteor. Defensively, Blissey fares the best, but is so passive it can't stop Miraidon from wearing it down and pressing Taunt to prevent healing. Spdef Groundceus can avoid the 2HKO from Draco but can only threaten the OHKO about 30% of the time if it opts to run EQ over Judgment. There are more niche options that can be run to check or surprise kill Miraidon like Iron Treads & Haban Eternatus, but they tend to fare poorly against the rest of the tier (arguably Blissey falls into this category as well but I've included it with the main checks since it does provide some utility against Calm Mind Arceus forms and other special attackers whereas Treads is really just useful for its ability to check Miraidon) or are just not worth using when compared to more standard sets. Without exception, each of these checks must fear whatever Tera type Miraidon happens to be running. Tera Dragon can be used to get an immediate power boost to muscle through a Ground type or Tera Flying/Bug can be used to remove its Ground weakness and set up on a mon that previously checked it. With a defensive Tera and Agility, Miraidon can even manage to get through its offensive checks, using Tera Fairy on a Koraidon locked into a Dragon move to get a free turn of set up or something similar with various other Tera types.
Miraidon has a lot of variety stemming from its massive usage rate, but the main sets it opts to run are the Boots pivot set, Specs set, double dance set, and Calm Mind Life Orb set, with options like Scarf being more niche. On preview it’s typically impossible to say with certainty which set Miraidon happens to be running since each of its sets can be used on pretty much any team archetype without major drawback. Starting with the Boots pivot set, Miraidon trades in the wallbreaking and sweeping capabilities of its other sets for the longevity provided by never taking hazards damage upon switching in. Miraidon can effectively come in, click Draco Meteor, and U-Turn out as many times as it wants during the game, provided it doesn’t use up all of its Draco Meteors. Like I mentioned above, a lot of the Spdef Ground types can switch into this set but can struggle with actually beating it. Assuming the Miraidon has U-Turn, and hits Draco Meteor, each interaction of switching your Spdef Ground in is going to come down to a 50/50 between whether the Miraidon Taunts or not, preventing recovery for the Ground type and resulting in Miraidon beating it next time it gets the opportunity to come in.
252 SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 240 HP / 252+ SpD Arceus-Ground: 186-219 (42.1 - 49.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clodsire: 210-247 (45.2 - 53.2%) -- 32.4% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 212+ SpD Gliscor: 262-310 (74 - 87.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Poison Heal
252 SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 240 HP / 252+ SpD Groudon: 225-265 (56.1 - 66%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Vessel of Ruin Ting-Lu: 181-214 (35.2 - 41.6%) -- 79.3% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clodsire: 210-247 (45.2 - 53.2%) -- 32.4% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 212+ SpD Gliscor: 262-310 (74 - 87.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Poison Heal
252 SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 240 HP / 252+ SpD Groudon: 225-265 (56.1 - 66%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Vessel of Ruin Ting-Lu: 181-214 (35.2 - 41.6%) -- 79.3% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
Even if the Ground type attacks Miraidon on the turn it uses Taunt, Miraidon will live the attack (aside from EQ Groundceus/Groudon) and proceed to win the 1v1 next time it comes in. Attempting to check this Miraidon set defensively is difficult and, in the long run, almost always going to favor the Miraidon user.
While the Specs set can no longer stop a defensive answer from healing, very few answers exist to reliably switch into it. Clodsire, Groudon, Gliscor, and Groundceus (most of the time), can no longer serve as reliable answers due to their inability to avoid the 2HKO from Specs Draco.
252 SpA Choice Specs Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor over 2 turns vs. 240 HP / 252+ SpD Arceus-Ground: 416-492 (94.3 - 111.5%) -- 68.8% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 212+ SpD Gliscor: 393-463 (111 - 130.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor over 2 turns vs. 240 HP / 252+ SpD Groudon: 506-596 (126.1 - 148.6%) -- guaranteed KO in 2 turns after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor over 2 turns vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clodsire: 470-556 (101.2 - 119.8%) -- guaranteed KO in 2 turns after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 212+ SpD Gliscor: 393-463 (111 - 130.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor over 2 turns vs. 240 HP / 252+ SpD Groudon: 506-596 (126.1 - 148.6%) -- guaranteed KO in 2 turns after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Hadron Engine Miraidon Draco Meteor over 2 turns vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clodsire: 470-556 (101.2 - 119.8%) -- guaranteed KO in 2 turns after Leftovers recovery
Ting-Lu and Blissey are the two mons that can switch into a Specs Miraidon without fearing much, but Ting-Lu can only do so once as it has no reliable recovery and Blissey isn’t very usable in the current meta. The Calm Mind LO set is fairly similar in power to the Specs set, the only notable difference is that it has a chance to OHKO Ting-Lu with Tera Dragon (at +1) whereas the Specs set is a 2HKO with Tera Dragon. For the sake of brevity, I won’t list the calcs here but I’m sure you can imagine how much +1 LO Miraidon is doing to anything that switches in.
Finishing with the double dance set, this set allows Miraidon to boost its speed to help prevent its offensive checks from revenge killing it, and enjoys much more bulk as a result of not having to invest in its Speed stat. Double dance can’t really afford to run Draco Meteor so it struggles breaking through Ground types when compared to the other sets, but at +1 it still hits respectable damage levels. If it opts to run Electric Seed, it can even avoid the OHKO from defensive Groudon and Groundceus, allowing it to safely 2HKO them.
+1 252+ SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Dragon Pulse vs. 240 HP / 252+ SpD Arceus-Ground: 199-235 (45.1 - 53.2%) -- 33.6% chance to 2HKO
+1 252+ SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clodsire: 226-267 (48.7 - 57.5%) -- 94.1% chance to 2HKO
+1 252+ SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 212+ SpD Gliscor: 282-333 (79.6 - 94%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Poison Heal
+1 252+ SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Dragon Pulse vs. 240 HP / 252+ SpD Groudon: 241-285 (60 - 71%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+1 252+ SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Vessel of Ruin Ting-Lu: 195-231 (37.9 - 44.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
+1 252+ SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clodsire: 226-267 (48.7 - 57.5%) -- 94.1% chance to 2HKO
+1 252+ SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 212+ SpD Gliscor: 282-333 (79.6 - 94%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Poison Heal
+1 252+ SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Dragon Pulse vs. 240 HP / 252+ SpD Groudon: 241-285 (60 - 71%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+1 252+ SpA Hadron Engine Miraidon Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Vessel of Ruin Ting-Lu: 195-231 (37.9 - 44.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
Now that all of the defensive calcs are out of the way, let’s look at the options you have to revenge kill Miraidon.
252 Atk Orichalcum Pulse Koraidon Dragon Claw vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Miraidon: 356-422 (104.3 - 123.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Deoxys-Attack Psycho Boost vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 337-398 (98.8 - 116.7%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Iron Bundle Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 254-300 (74.4 - 87.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Tera Ice Iron Bundle Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 340-400 (99.7 - 117.3%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Sword of Ruin Chien-Pao Ice Shard vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Miraidon: 270-320 (79.1 - 93.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Sword of Ruin Tera Ice Chien-Pao Ice Shard vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Miraidon: 360-428 (105.5 - 125.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+1 252 Atk Zacian-Crowned Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Miraidon: 488-576 (143.1 - 168.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 369-437 (108.2 - 128.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Deoxys-Attack Psycho Boost vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 337-398 (98.8 - 116.7%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Iron Bundle Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 254-300 (74.4 - 87.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Tera Ice Iron Bundle Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 340-400 (99.7 - 117.3%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Sword of Ruin Chien-Pao Ice Shard vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Miraidon: 270-320 (79.1 - 93.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Sword of Ruin Tera Ice Chien-Pao Ice Shard vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Miraidon: 360-428 (105.5 - 125.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+1 252 Atk Zacian-Crowned Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Miraidon: 488-576 (143.1 - 168.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 369-437 (108.2 - 128.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 369-437 (91.5 - 108.4%) -- 50% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 422-500 (104.7 - 124%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Tera Ice Iron Bundle Ice Beam vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 340-400 (84.3 - 99.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Sword of Ruin Tera Ice Chien-Pao Ice Shard vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Miraidon: 360-428 (89.3 - 106.2%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
+1 252 Atk Zacian-Crowned Play Rough vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Miraidon: 492-578 (122 - 143.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Deoxys-Attack Psycho Boost vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 337-398 (83.6 - 98.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Orichalcum Pulse Koraidon Dragon Claw vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Miraidon: 360-426 (89.3 - 105.7%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 422-500 (104.7 - 124%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Tera Ice Iron Bundle Ice Beam vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 340-400 (84.3 - 99.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Sword of Ruin Tera Ice Chien-Pao Ice Shard vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Miraidon: 360-428 (89.3 - 106.2%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
+1 252 Atk Zacian-Crowned Play Rough vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Miraidon: 492-578 (122 - 143.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Deoxys-Attack Psycho Boost vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 337-398 (83.6 - 98.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Orichalcum Pulse Koraidon Dragon Claw vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Miraidon: 360-426 (89.3 - 105.7%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
With the double dance set at 248 HP, Flutter Mane & Iron Bundle now require Specs to OHKO Miraidon, and many of the other guaranteed OHKOs dropped to 2HKOs or to rolls. This isn’t taking into account the effects of Electric Seed, which allows Miraidon to live all of the physical attacks from Zacian, Koraidon, and Chien-Pao. This also isn’t considering Tera, which enables Miraidon to completely switch its weaknesses and freely set up on previous checks.
Looking at Miraidon in a vacuum, everything I’ve said above holds true and looks to total to an insurmountable presence both in the builder and during the game. Its defensive checks aren’t (usually) long term and its offensive checks struggle to beat it based on the set its running or the Tera it uses. However, I’m of the opinion that in spite of all of this, Miraidon isn’t ban worthy.
I'm going to start with the double dance set since those were the last calcs displayed. Once it has set up, double dance Miraidon can be a very difficult mon to check, at least until Electric Terrain runs out. Without the additional boost provided by the Terrain, Miraidon is much more manageable, and it needs to spend at least 2 turns clicking Agility & Calm Mind to reach those difficult-to-manage levels in the first place, 2 turns of terrain that it has to burn. Even then, the Spdef Ground types serve to answer this variant of Miraidon pretty well, either by phazing it or clicking Toxic. This is without mentioning that Miraidon is rarely given the opportunity to freely set up to a level to sweep an entire team. Even if it does get to that level, Ho-Oh can come in, use its Tera (the two most common in Fairy or Ground allow it to beat this set) and phaze it. I realize in practice it's often not this simple, but a lot of the time I've seen Miraidon able to click Agility into Calm Mind and proceed to sweep a team it was because their opponent misplayed and let the Miraidon freely set up. It can be difficult to stay in on an unrevealed Miraidon set to attempt to phaze it but going into a Spdef Ground type isn't a game losing play against Miraidon, and this Miraidon set in particular cannot threaten to OHKO them and cannot prevent Toxic/Whirlwind from Clod/Glisc/Ting. If you opt to drop the Spdef Ground then your team is probably more offensive, and a 308 speed Miraidon likely isn’t being given the opportunity to click Agility unless its behind screens.
A few of the pro-ban arguments I’ve seen mention how the defensive checks like Clodsire & Ting-Lu make no progress in the game, essentially switching into Miraidon to take a Draco and then getting forced out by Ho-Oh, Gliscor, etc, which, while true, ignores their ability to set hazards, spread Toxic, or otherwise make progress passively. They don’t make immediate progress, but I disagree with them just being sponges that exist to check Miraidon. It’s important to take into account the long-term effect of the hazards they set up if nothing else. If Miraidon happens to be running a Specs set, the single spike that Ting-Lu is able to set up will work to put it in range of any number of Scarf users or revenge killers like Ekiller that previously were unable to revenge it from full. Further, everything I’ve said about Miraidon above is ignoring the opportunity cost that inherently comes with clicking Draco Meteor or an Electric type attack. Want to break past that Clodsire? You’ll need to click Draco in order to do that, leaving you at -2 Spatk and allowing any mon to come in and start to set up on you. But wait, your opponent actually went into Ho-Oh to take the Draco and doubled into Clodsire to take the incoming Electro Drift. Now you’ve achieved essentially nothing and you’re forced to either pivot out or risk taking half your HP to prevent hazards from going up. Having a Ground type on your team is enough to, at worst, force a 50/50 for the Miraidon user, and given that many of the typical hazard setters are Ground mons, I don’t see this "need" as being overly constraining in the builder.
Another part to the pro-ban argument is that most of the Spdef Ground types wouldn’t be used if Miraidon was no longer in the tier, and I can’t really see that happening. Despite the addition of Boots last gen, hazard stacking has taken on a great deal of prevalence due to the nonexistence of good removal. Corviknight & Giratina are the only real reliable Defoggers, and both have a multitude of issues preventing them from being used, of which Miraidon is only one. Likewise, if you want to use Rapid Spin you’re limited to Treads, Tusk, and Terapagos, and I very much doubt that any of the three will start to see a huge increase in usage if Miraidon is removed from the tier (if anything Treads will just completely disappear). Where does that leave us for hazards? For the most part, with Ground types like Gliscor, Ting-Lu, Clodsire, and Groudon for Spikes and Arceus forms for Stealth Rock (and of course with Deoxys for both). I don't see Magearna or Diancie start to pick up in usage as a result of a Miraidon ban, so the main users of Spikes will most likely remain the same, but I don’t really want to speculate too much on a metagame without Miraidon in it because there are too many ways it could go. Who knows, Ogerpon might pick up in usage and start running a Spikes pivot set. As for running Spdef over Def investment, Miraidon isn't the only mon Spdef sets are useful for. Spdef Groundceus can set up on support Arceus-Water by running a Spdef set and can beat Kyogre if it uses Tera, two things it can't do with a phys Def set. Similarly, Ting-Lu appreciates the added bulk to check Calm Mind Arceus forms, and Clodsire uses it to check Kyogre. Regardless, I don’t see Ground types disappearing just because they aren’t “needed” to check Miraidon anymore.
Since I’ve mostly looked at the interactions with the Boots & double dance sets, I want to take a look at the interactions with the Specs set. The Miraidon user is always going to be forced into deciding between Draco, Drift, and U-Turn/Volt Switch if the opposing team has a Ground type, and if they guess wrong then they have to switch out and give up momentum. If Miraidon clicks Draco on the Ground type and chips it then the Miraidon user has to decide between clicking Draco again to secure the KO or switching out to prevent a Fairy type from coming in freely or, worse, a mon from getting a free turn against a -4 Miraidon. The end result is either the Ground type healing itself on that turn, the Ground type being KO'd and a mon being given a free turn vs a -4 Miraidon, or a Fairy type coming in to take advantage of the choice locked Miraidon. Specs Miraidon is without a doubt an incredibly potent wallbreaker, but I've never felt it's so overbearing as to be constraining in the builder when most of the time it's clicking Draco and giving an opportunity for a Fairy type, or a mon that can set up on it, to come in freely. It’s not like the Fairy types in the tier are bad either, even if two of them no longer have the same presence they did in DLC1, so I’ll discuss them next.
With the return of Ho-Oh and NDM, I’ve seen it said that both Zacian & Flutter Mane have dropped off in terms of offensive presence. I agree with this for the most part, but I don’t think it’s anywhere near as bad as most people believe. Zacian has the ability to power through both Ho-Oh and NDM without being forced to run a suboptimal move set, and Flutter Mane can threaten Ho-Oh with Power Gem (though admittedly as a result the Specs set is far less potent). I’ll never claim DLC2 didn’t hurt them, but both are still very strong offensive presences within the tier and I’ve taken to running Zacian on more of my DLC2 teams recently. Even if you are running Zacian or Flutter Mane, what’s to stop Miraidon from using its Tera and winning the 1v1? First, Miraidon needs hazards up to guarantee the OHKO (with its pivot set) on Flutter & Zacian, both of which threaten the OHKO and force the Miraidon user to Tera if they’re committed to that line. Assuming the Miraidon Teras into Steel for the biggest defensive boost, and assuming the Zacian isn’t clicking Tera Fighting Close Combat, the Miraidon will be left with at most ~65% from Zacian and ~73% from Flutter Mane.
+1 252 Atk Zacian-Crowned Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Tera Steel Miraidon: 122-144 (35.7 - 42.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Tera Steel Miraidon: 92-109 (26.9 - 31.9%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Tera Steel Miraidon: 92-109 (26.9 - 31.9%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
While this lets Miraidon win the 1v1, suddenly it’s both chipped and can no longer threaten to change its type, allowing the opponent to revenge it with Low Kick from Scarf Koraidon for example. The greatest asset Miraidon has is its uncertainty in set and Tera. Once the set is revealed, and this can be as simple as setting hazards, it can be played around much easier, and once the Tera has been used, by it or another mon, suddenly revenge killing it is fairly easy when the guessing factor has been removed. Of course, the Zacian/Flutter/other offensive check has the ability to Tera as well, and it’s the same with other defensive mons like Ho-Oh. Tera Ground Ho-Oh is a fantastic Miraidon check and it’s not like it only runs it for Miraidon either. Ground provides Ho-Oh with a resistance to Rock, allowing it to Whirlwind a setup Groundceus/NDM while avoiding the OHKO from Stone Edge. Similarly, Arceus-Fairy or Groundceus can Tera into the other immunity and get a free turn vs Miraidon. Both players are able to Tera, and properly accounting for Miraidon in the builder is just as essential as it is to account for Koraidon or NDM. I’ve never felt that Miraidon “warps the builder” to an unbearable level, at least not any more than other meta defining mons in this gen and past gens.
Like the survey results show, this metagame isn’t SS. SS was characterized by its stability and that’s fine, I still really enjoy playing it. SV is much more dynamic, and I don’t see that changing regardless of what, if anything, gets banned. Tera is an inherently dynamic mechanic, and the power level of this gen is way beyond what we were used to in SS. Offensive teams might be favored, but there’s still plenty of other options to use; no one is forced into running offense and offense alone. There’s a lot more counterplay to Miraidon both in the builder and during the game than people seem to believe, and hopefully I was able to shine some light on why I will be voting to not ban Miraidon.
Main team I used for reqs
